Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer? As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet? With her razor-sharp writing and trademark psychological insight, Gillian Flynn delivers a fast-paced, devilishly dark, and ingeniously plotted thriller that confirms her status as one of the hottest writers around. (Goodreads Review)

Flo's Review
This book...wow. What a journey! Okay, so all I have heard about this book was positive hype. During the Amazon week of amazing deals it was on sale one day for $3.99, but I was like, "Then I'll have to pay shipping and that's makes it like $7! I'll just get it from the library." Excellent plan, right?! Yeah, until I was number NINE HUNDRED SOMETHING on the waiting list! I am not even kidding. Not to mention, if you have an e-version? It's not lendable. I tried. Luckily for me, I have multiple library cards, so I made it onto another waiting list where I was #9. So, picture this -- all this hype, all this trouble to get it, and I finally get the book! I suggest it be our February Book Nerds read. I am ready to be blown away by its amazingness! ...and, "Eh." I mean, I'm kind of interested. But I've renewed it 4 times now, and whenever I pick it up it's because I think, "It's the Book Nerds Read that I selected, I have to finish it!" But still....eh. And then whenever I think of stopping it, I hear someone else rave about how great a book it is! (Seriously. Even Oprah.) But I know my own biases as a reader. One of my friends whom I was trying to e-borrow it from said something along the lines of how there is not one morally redeemable character in the book. And from what I've read -- she's right. I don't really like anyone. I think if I liked Amy, I would care that she was Gone, and I would be wondering where she went. If I liked Nick, I would care that his wife was missing. But I don't. So I don't. The book is due tomorrow and I'm not going for a fifth renewal. I'm throwing in the towel. I'm interested to hear your comments -- have you read it? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you want to? What have you heard about it?

Jacque's Review

I'm only 100 pages into the 400 page e-book. So far I would have to agree...it is okay. Unlike Flo, I actually like Nick up to this point. He is a little self-centered, but he seems like a good guy. Now that his wife is missing, I actually feel sorry for him because the detectives working the case are obviously trying to pin this on him, but I don't think he is guilty. Clearly, I don't have much to base this opinion on since I am only a quarter of the way through the book, but he just doesn't seem like the type. (I have read a lot of murder mysteries and can usually identify a creeper. Nick doesn't give off that vibe AT ALL.)

I was genuinely interested in the book until Amy disappeared. When the detectives showed up, I became frustrated and lost interest in the story. I really wanted to just pull the plug on this book and add it to my could-not-finish shelf. Unfortunately....EVERYONE...I mean EVERYONE keeps telling me how OUTSTANDING this book is. I have been told that I am now at the "good part" and the rest of the book should just "fly by." Well, I wasn't convinced. I moved this book to my "On Hold" shelf and will resume it at a later time. I have a few books that I have to read for review tours and it was taking WAY too long to get through this book. In the amount of time it took me to read the first 100 pages of Gone Girl, I can usually finish at least two books. It just wasn't holding my attention. I would read a few pages, then set it down with no interest in picking it back up.

After I finish reading the books I committed to reading for review tours, I plan on giving Gone Girl another try. I will certainly give an updated review once I read the entire book. It isn't fair to judge a book by only the first quarter, but that was the best I could do at this time.